See My Feet

I have been taking more pictures lately than kayaking, so check out my Zooomr pics to see what I've been up to.

After Dinner Walk

Paddle Season has Begun!

Well for me at least. The water temp was about 60 deg F...too cold to go for a swim, but survivable, if I did. I had a chance to try out my new NRS Mambas. They work really well. My hands stayed very warm. So warm in fact, I took them off after a while.

I paddled for about three and a half hours total today. I didn't break any speed records, but I did paddle further than I had originally planned. I investigated a part of Michigan Center lake that I have not paddled before. It was like paddling at a totally new lake for me. I almost had the entire place to myself today. I saw a couple of fishermen, a small family out in a little Zodiac, and two teenagers in kayaks. Of course the teenagers were dressed for the air temp and not the water. I remember being young and stupid....how did I survive?

I felt pretty good today. My back didn't start hurting, and the kayak didn't feel unstable to me either. Both were concerns when I planned earlier this week to go paddle today. The kayak did however feel very tight. The back band and foot pegs were still in the same locations that I had left them in from last fall. Like Alex, I felt very slow and heavy, after a long cold winter.



I did see a lot of wild life today. Spring is in full swing and there were a lot of birds on nests. I saw a Sand Hill Crane sitting a nest...a first for me. There were also Mute Swans and Canada Geese sitting nests as well. While paddling I had to be very careful not to get too close to them.

First Ride

Last night was my first ride this year. The weather was perfect. The weather wasn't really holding me back until now, but with all of the back problems that I had this winter, I figured that I would just take it easy. This happens to be the put-in that I use when I paddle near home. I just had to stop and dip my fingers in the water. It is still pretty cold. We had snow flurries just last week, and we haven't had any warm rain to warm up the lakes yet. The back feels good now, and this weekend is forecast to be warm and sunny.....Finally.

Lily

Mambas

My wife is pretty cool. I got these in my Easter basket this year. With the weather being as cold as it is so far this spring, I am probably going to get a lot of good use out of them too. Thanks, dear.

April?

Jeez, ya just gotta love Michigan in the spring time.
Snow on the ground.

Black ice on the road. It is gonna get warm some day isn't it?

Spring Sunset

Bright Eyes

Another picture for granny.

First Flower of Spring

Woo hoo! The first flower of spring. This little beauty is growing in the flower bed in front of the house. Its been warm outside too. The ice melted off the lakes last week. The water is still cold, but it won't be long until I can go paddle.

T-shirt

Look at this! I just might have to order one of these.

On My Desk

I found a blog (via boing boing) where creative people submit photos of their workspaces. It's kind of funny to see what kind of stuff other people collect. All three of these are of my desk at work. Clearly we creative people function best in a slightly cluttered environment.